Roosters coach Trent Robinson said it wasn't a bad first hitout of the year but he was unimpressed by their defence.

"I thought the attack wasn't too bad, for the guys we had out there. They worked hard to get into good positions and offered some pressure to Penrith," he said.

"Defensively we were quite poor, were slow to move for the most part. That was disappointing, the way we defended the ruck."

He was unsure whether key recruits James Tedesco and Cooper Cronk would play in their final trial against Manly on the Central Coast next week.

Panthers coach Anthony Griffin was pleased Maloney got in some game time.

"He got 25 minutes there tonight and it was good. That was his idea too, he wanted to play. I gave him the option of waiting until next week but he wanted to get out there with the boys and make a start," he said.